You neglected to mention that we also compared the performance of the Scythe Katana and Thermalright MST-9775 to the Intel Retail HSF that comes with the Core 2 Duo processor. Until we test a cooler that might perform better than the Tuniq the range of performance is "real-world" between the Intel Retail HSF and the Tuniq. We believe most readers want to know how a tested cooler compares in this rnage - so they can decide if the features or cost are worth the performance drop from the best we have tested.

In the future we will be testing some new tower coolers that should challenge the Tuniq. We also plan a value cooler roundup of coolers under $30.

The comparison was between the baseline (the included cooler) and the best air cooler there is (at least known/proven until now).
Should the Tuniq Tower be compared to the best air cooled equipments out there? Yes, and it would be nice to compare it to a not very expensive water cooled system too. Reply

Getting one dropped my temps from my old Swiftech by 5-8C when idle and 8-15C under load.
It sure was a good enough reason for me. And that's with the fan at a quiet 1400rpm.

And I agree (with what I think you're saying) that, if you're going to spend $30 for an aftermarket cooler, and the Tuniq will fit, why not spend an extra 20-25 for best aftermarket cooler you can get? Reply

I think it's a good addition to AT to include cooling reviews. However, you guys should see if you can expand temperature gauging a little more to also include PWM temps and other important temperatures, as some HSF solutions have a large affect on these, while others don't.

Also, really want to see the Coolermaster Hyper TX in the next roundup! Reply

What was the orientation of the CPU/heatsink during the tests? Was the case (and MB) in a horizontal or vertical orientation? Since these new coolers use heatpipes and since the heatpipe technology relies on a liquid that turns to gas when heated then back to liquid when cool, the orientation of the heatsink/heatpipe plays a huge role in how the well it will perform.

I would like to think that you are running these tests with the case in a vertical orientation like what a large portion of your readers would be using. But since you never say we don’t know. If these tests are being conducted with the case in a horizontal orientation (laying flat on a table), I would expect that the results would be different than what people would get at home (mostly vertical).

Thanks for the info. Now I wonder if someone is making a CPU cooler where the heatpipes are setup to be in a somewhat vertical orientation when the case is vertical?

If you look at some GPU and chipset heatpipe coolers they obviously had that in mind with their design. Hot gas will flow up, gravity will pull the cool liquid down.

I would be willing to bet (based upon the heatpipe design) that Thermalright MST-9775 would have done better in a horizontal orientation than when in a vertical orientation. Can you re-test the Thermalright MST-9775 in a vertical orientation and see if it made any difference?

The OCZ 520w PS handles a pair of overclocked 7900GTX in SLI mode just fine. We have destoyed power supplies with higher wattage ratings with this same configuration. It is also quiet for a PS, which is why it is also used in the hard drive test bed. We had no problem with a single 8800GTX in this test rig, but we have not yet tried 8800GTX SLI in this rig. Reply

Wondering -- for those of us with space-challenged cases, could you mention the height of the coolers in question? For people who can't fit a Tuniq Tower, the limitation is likely to be height.
If it's already mentioned somewhere, then I apologize for missing it. Reply

The Katana is 130mm tall (5.11") and the standard Thermalright MST-9775 is 71mm (2.8"). Thermalright also makes a shorter OEM version of the MST-9775 called the MST-9775 LE that is said to fit any case configuration available.

The Tuniq Tower 120 in contrast is 155mm tall and mid-tower cases are said to be 190mm on average in the heatsink height dimension. Reply

I second that motion. I have an Lian Li PC-G50, and the PSU sits right above the CPU, only aftermarket cooler I can think of that may fit, would be the Ole Gigabyte one (which if memory serves, it was a pretty good cooler). Reply

While the Katana has been out for a year and a half, most earlier reviews tested it on the hot Pressler or a Socket 939 AMD. Performance on the Core 2 Duo is quite different, and C2D has only been available about 6 months.

We are testing some of the older and more popular coolers that are still available because what was true of the Katana on Pressler or AMD is certainly NOT the case on Core 2 Duo. Reply

If you've been around AnandTech for a while, you know we haven't done cooling reviews in quite some time. The idea is to establish a baseline of testing results for some of the popular coolers, even if they've been out a while and over time we will be adding more cooler results. Basically, we have to start somewhere and move forward. Luckily, unlike motherboards, GPUs, and some other components, HSFs tend to have a pretty long shelf-life (at least for the effective solutions). Reply

Since the Thermalright fan blows down towards the motherboard (as does Intel's stock HSF), but the Katana blows across (and out of the case), it seems like there would be a noticable air flow difference on the components around the CPU (e.g., VRM, memory, and NB).

Was there any difference noted in the temperature of the "motherboard" (which probably is the NB)? I'm wondering if this is a concern or not, especially for OC'ing? Reply

For coolers, like the Katana, which lack 4-wire connectors that 775 motherboards can automatically adjust fan speeds via, perhaps it would be helpful to take advantage of speedfan for comparing cooling across a range of fan speeds. (This is assuming that the relatively new 680i motherboard that you are using is supported by SpeedFan.) Reply

Scythe has introduced another version of the Katana called the Katana 775. This was to address the installation and fan speed issues we discussed. The Katana 775 only fits Socket 775 and it comes with a 4-pin fan header. The original Katana, with universal installation as we reviewed here, continues as a current product.

If you are only concerned with Socket 775 the Scythe Katana 775 looks lik a much better choice with easier installation and fan speed control at the same price or less than the original Katana. Reply

We are not finished with coolers under $30, and we will try to include the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro in our upcoming value cooler roundup. The Freezer 7 Pro also uses a 92mm fan, but it weighs a bit more than this pair at 520g (vs. 300g and 420g). Reply